South African Companies Do Best Job Overall, While Chinese Companies
Lag Other Nations; New Coalition Formed to Push for Better Disclosure in
Developing Economies.
NEW YORK, Jan. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A study of emerging market
companies indicates nearly nine out of 10 firms (87 percent) now offer at
least some sustainability disclosure, according to a major new report
released today by the Social Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN), a
working group of the Social Investment Forum (SIF), and conducted by the
independent investment research firm KLD Research & Analytics, Inc.
Launched at Institutional Investor Events' 2nd Annual Forum on
Responsible Investing, produced in association with SIF, the SIRAN report
also found that among the seven countries in the study, South Africa
emerged as the overall leader in sustainability reporting, with six
companies meeting all five criteria, accounting for 75 percent of the
country sample.
Sustainability reporting is designed to provide information on an
entity's environmental, social, and governance performance and impacts and
their initiatives for improving their performance in these areas.
China was the laggard on sustainability reporting with three companies
meeting none of the five criteria, and only 25 percent of Chinese companies
surveyed meeting all criteria.
In a clear sign of room for improvement in reporting by emerging market
companies, only 27 percent of the surveyed firms made use of the Global
Reporting Initiative (GRI) reporting framework, a widely recognized
standard for environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting, in their
report.
The full report along with an on-line company tracking database can be
found at http://www.siran.org/emd.
In addition to the release of the report, SIRAN, working in partnership
with the International Working Group (IWG) of SIF, also announced the
formation of a new international coalition of NGOs, investment managers,
and institutional asset owners to push for improved disclosure in emerging
market countries.
The coalition has the support of a broad range of organizations
including the GRI, the PRI in Emerging Markets and Developing Countries
unit of the United Nations Environment Programme's Principles for
Responsible Investment, Ceres, and the Association for Sustainable and
Responsible Investment in Asia (ASrIA).
The coalition has already attracted signatories representing $199
billion in assets under management for an investor sign-on statement asking
emerging market companies for improved sustainability disclosure. Coalition
members will use the statement along with company meetings as part of an
advocacy campaign that will work to move the needle in time for the next
report update.
SIRAN representative Paul Hilton, Director of Advanced Equities
Research, Calvert, said: "We are encouraged that companies in emerging
markets are getting the message: analysts need information about
environmental, social, and governance performance in order to identify the
best companies in which to invest. Companies that are transparent will be
rewarded by the market."
Noel Friedman, managing director of Research Products, KLD cautioned:
"Although the results are encouraging, it is important to emphasize that a
company can produce a high quality sustainability report and still fail to
achieve sustainability in the areas relevant to its sector, such as climate
change for utilities or human rights and the environment for mining
companies. At the same time, a sustainability report provides an important
tool for stakeholders to communicate with companies about a range of
issues, and allows companies to publicly establish goals and benchmarks for
improvement."
The SIRAN study examined the state of sustainability reporting at 75
emerging market companies, focusing on seven countries: Brazil, China,
India, Russia, South Africa, South Korea and Taiwan; with a specific focus
on three industries: Energy - Oil and Natural Gas (21 companies), Materials
- Metals and Mining (28 companies), and Telecommunications (26 companies).
For the SIRAN report KLD examined disclosure in five areas: public
disclosure of sustainability issues; a dedicated sustainability area within
the website or annual report; existence of a stand-alone sustainability
report; reference to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework for
the sustainability report; and the existence of sustainability goals and
benchmarks.
Other key findings included: About four out of five (81 percent) of the
companies maintained a separate section on their website or in their annual
report to address sustainability issues, while just over half (51 percent)
publish a sustainability report.
About the Social Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN) and the
Social Investment Forum (SIF)
SIRAN is an analyst network that supports more than 150 North American
social research analysts from 30 investment firms, research providers, and
affiliated investor groups, and is a working group of the Social Investment
Forum. The Social Investment Forum is a national membership association
dedicated to advancing the concept, practice, and growth of socially and
environmentally responsible investing (SRI). For more information, see
http://www.siran.org and http://www.socialinvest.org.
About KLD Research & Analytics, Inc.
KLD Research & Analytics, Inc. is an independent investment research
firm providing investment management tools used by professionals to serve
clients requiring investment strategies based on social and environmental
responsibility. Since 1988, institutional investors, managers, trustees,
consultants and advisors have depended on the quality and expertise of KLD.
Institutional money managers worldwide use KLD's research to integrate
environmental, social and governance factors into their investment
decisions. For more information see http://www.kld.com.
About Institutional Investor Events
Institutional Investor Events produces high quality conferences and
seminars that leverage the content of Institutional Investor News' 17
financial newsletter titles. Like the Institutional Investor newsletters,
the conferences deliver critical intelligence across the entire field of
financial services, providing leading edge information on tomorrow's
trends. For more information see http://www.iievents.com/.
About the International Working Group (IWG)
Established in 1997, IWG is a collaboration of global institutional SRI
investors, along with research and advocacy partners whose primary mission
is to provide education on existing and emerging global SRI issues and to
create a space for sharing ideas and collaborative action. IWG is a working
group of the Social Investment Forum. For more information, see
http://www.socialinvest.org/projects/iwg.
SOURCE Social Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN),
Washington,
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Related links:
http://www.iievents.com
http://www.kld.com/ http://www.siran.org
http://www.socialinvest.org
http://www.socialinvest.org/projects/iwg
CONTACT:
Paul Hilton, Director, Advanced Equities
Research, Calvert Group, Ltd, +1-301-657-7048,
paul.hilton@calvert.com; Patrick Mitchell, The Hastings Group,
+1-703-276-3266, pmitchell@hastingsgroup.com, for Calvert Group;
Darragh Gallant, Director of Marketing and Client Services, KLD
Research & Analytics, Inc., +1-617-426-5270, dgallant@kld.com; or
Amy Blumenthal or Karen Myers, Blumenthal & Associates,
+1-617-879-1511, +1-978-502-6218 (Mobile), for KLD Research &
Analytics
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